Alone
by manic-munchkin15
Summary: Piper is all alone. Why? Read and find out! PiperxAerrow just a little bit at first...more in later chapters
1. Chapter 1

A/N: My first attempt at a Storm Hawks fic...try to be nice

Disclaimer: Don't own anything but the plot...dang

Chapter 1

Alone.

So alone.

She could hardly remember a time when loneliness wasn't all she'd ever known. She'd had friends once, but it was so very long ago. Once, her heart had been whole. She had loved a boy once, a boy who was more of a man than any man twice his age. But he was gone now and the only thing that prevented her from forgetting him forever was the diamond necklace she always wore, a few old, slightly fuzzy, pictures, and a musical locket that she also always wore, but never let anybody see. She kept them in a little box. When the loneliness would become too much she would pull out the box and try to remember all the good times and fun she had had with her friends.

One was of them sitting on their skimmers, grinning.

The next was an official squadron photo, all of them in full armour, standing beside the Condor.

The third picture was of them laughing as they had a pillow fight.

The fourth and fifth pictures were from a trip they had taken to Tropica. One was of her pushing her blonde haired squademate into the water during a game of chicken, while the other was of her sitting in the lap of the red haired squadron leader eating _his_ ice cream while he had one arm around her waist and an angry expression on his face, though his emerald green eyes were laughing. In both pictures she was wearing a navy blue bikini with orange edging, orange ties and an orange flower on the left side of the top.

The last picture in the box was one she cherished and loved, but sometimes it only made her lonelier. It was a picture from a Christmas party they had had many years ago. Someone had put mistletoe up and she hadn't seen it until her squadron leader had pointed it out … and he had only noticed it because he was standing under it with her! They had kissed and quickly pulled away, both of them blushing madly. And that was what the last picture was … them kissing and both blushing enough to rival his hair.

She sat on her bed, staring at the last picture. She was still as a statue and didn't move even when a tear rolled down her cheek and dropped onto the picture below.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Piper woke the next morning to the pale, but bright, sunlight slanting in the window and across her face. She squinted and sat up, looking around her tiny apartment. It was still in the messy state that she had left it in the night before. The box of pictures was on the floor, it's contents scattered about it, clothes were thrown pell-mell on a chair in the corner, books and papers were piled on her desk, and, though she could only just barely see them around a corner, yesterday's dishes were piled in the sink.

She yawned, sighed, and got out of bed. Grabbing a towel, she walked into the tiny bathroom that was part of the apartment.

There was a corner shower, a toilet and a sink with a cupboard underneath. There was also a medicine cabinet / mirror over the sink. Piper looked at her reflection and grimaced. The girl who stared back at her reminded her more of a frumpy middle-aged woman in her mid-life crisis, than a 21 year-old girl in College, with a part-time job at a café / restaurant. Piper rubbed the sleep out of her eyes, then turned the shower on and got in.

_15 minutes later_

She shut the water off and got out. Showers used to make her feel energised and happy, but now … now they just made her feel more aware of the state of slight depression that she had been slowly sinking into for the last 6 years. Piper walked back into her room and got dressed, pulling on a pair of jeans, a T-shirt, a sweater and a pair of flats. She brushed her midnight hair and pulled it up into a high ponytail. Making sure she had everything she needed for her classes, Piper grabbed some breakfast, her keys, her jacket and left for school.


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: Sorry about the last two chapters being so short. I'm working on it...

Disclaimer: Nope...still own nothing ('cept the plot and my OC)

Chapter 3

Piper pulled into the college's parking lot and parked her heli-scooter. She got off and walked inside to her locker. Pulling out the books she needed, Piper glanced up at the clock. Gasping, she quickly slammed her locker shut and hurried to her first class. She just barely managed to sit in her seat before the teacher came in.

The rest of the day passed without event. Before she knew it, Piper was putting her books back in her locker, grabbing her uniform for work, and getting on her heli-scooter. She rode out of the parking lot and halfway across the city, to the café where she worked after school.

Piper hurried in through the back entrance, into the break room and pulled her uniform on, stuffing her other clothes into the tiny locker she had had given to her. The uniform for the café consisted of a black skirt (pants for the boys), a tan button-up shirt with thin brown stripes, and a tan and green diagonally striped tie. There was also a small apron-thing with pockets for a notepad, a pen/pencil, and the cheque holder to be carried in. As she struggled with the tie, another girl walked into the room. This girl had light blue – almost grey – eyes, black rectangular glasses, long purple nails, and her sandy brown hair in two braids. Piper smiled when she saw her.

The girl's name was Beckie, and she was the only real friend that Piper had anymore. She worked at the café just like Piper and it was where they had met. It was Beckie who had managed to keep Piper from sinking into a deeper depression. Beckie hadn't been able to keep her from being the little bit depressed that she was, but she kept Piper from doing anything crazy or rash.

"Hey Piper! Need help with your tie again?" She said with a laugh.

"Yes please!" Cried Piper. "I just can't seem to get the hang of this stupid thing!" Beckie laughed and helped Piper to do up her tie.

"Come on," she said, straightening out the tie. "Our shift started a couple minutes ago. Dumb-can with have his in-famous hissy-fit-freakout if we're any later." Duncan was the shift manager, and had a thing about punctuality. They both grabbed a notepad and pen, and ran out the door, immediately throwing themselves into their work so that Duncan, hopefully, wouldn't notice their sudden appearance.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Two hours later

Piper was clearing another table when she looked up to see a young man standing by the door. His back was to her, but the colour of his hair was giving her a funny feeling in her stomach. Just then, Beckie came up to seat him and, as he turned to look at her, Piper could see his face and the colour of his eyes. The young man at the front of the café had red hair and green eyes.

Her heart stopped.

There, in the very café where she was working, was Aerrow.

Piper finished the table as quickly as she could, then practically ran the tray of dishes into the kitchen, and then she _did_ run, outside. She leaned against the wall as she practically hyperventilated, but none of this seemed real, even _after_ she pinched herself _twice_. As she realised that she wasn't dreaming, Piper's eyes began water as she bit her lip, trying not to cry. She hadn't seen him since the day that their squad had fallen apart. It became even harder to keep her tears back as she remembered that awful day.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

A/N: Here's chapie 5! It's kinda, slightly, sorta longer…hehe looks sheepish Sorry, but chapter 6 won't be up for a few days, cause there's a lot of b-days this week…including mine…TODAY! Anywho…chapter 6 should be up by Friday…and chapter 7 is in progress

Disclaimer: Lemme chek…nope still nothing…cept the plot and my OC ;)

Chapter 5

Meanwhile

Beckie saw the man standing at the door and, as there was no one else there attending to him, she walked over.

"Table for one?" she asked. He turned towards her. His red hair and green eyes really looked familiar to her, but she couldn't quite put her finger on it. He smiled.

"No, thank you. I'm actually here looking for someone. You wouldn't happen to know anyone named Piper who works here, would you?" The man asked. Beckie had to stifle a gasp as she realised who the man was and why he had looked so familiar. Beckie had seen the pictures that Piper treasured, so she knew, somewhat, who Aerrow was. Suddenly, she became rather enraged. How dare he come back after all these years! Piper had been heartbroken since before she had come to live here and Beckie had had to work _incredibly_ hard to keep her from a state of mega-depression. Her face became stony.

"Follow me, please." She said in a monotone voice. Beckie led Aerrow through the restaurant and into the break room, not caring if her manager flipped out on her. As she opened the door, she saw that Piper wasn't there, but led Aerrow in anyway. She closed the door and rounded on him, angry fire evident in her eyes. He looked slightly wary of her expression.

"_How dare you_!" she screeched, not caring who heard. Aerrow took a step back in surprise. "How _dare_ you come back after _all these years_! When I met Piper she was in one of _the scariest_ states of depression I have _ever_ seen. Granted I haven't seen _that_ many, but you left that poor girl _heartbroken_. Oh and don't even _bother_ trying to deny it or pin it on somebody else. Piper told me the _whole_ story. You…you are just a…a…a _cruel_ and _heartless_ _**bastard**_…you _**ASS**_!" She paused. The room became silent and Aerrow just stood there, stunned. "_Well?_" She snapped. "Don't you have anything to say for yourself?" Aerrow just hung his head.

Finally he spoke. "I don't really have anything to say for myself. I did before, but you pretty much summed up what I was planning to say." As he looked up at her, Beckie saw the tears welling up in his eyes. Her anger subsided almost instantly and she felt bad for yelling.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to rub it in like that. I wasn't really thinking how it would make you feel, I was just angry cause of the pain Piper's been in these past 5 years I've known her and even before that." Aerrow shook his head. "It wasn't really rubbing it in. Really! You honestly couldn't make me feel any worse about what I did than I do already. Don't worry about it." He looked around, finally having the chance to see where he was. "Um…where's Piper?"

"She's, obviously, not in here, so I'm not entirely sure, but I know that she wouldn't leave yet; our shift isn't over and the manager is a prick when it comes to arriving late or leaving early." Beckie looked around again, thinking. "Maybe she went out back for some air. If you're gonna go find her, go around the outside. I'm probably in enough trouble as it is, so letting someone who doesn't work here walk around in the back would be a bad idea cause my manager would _freak_! Not that it's your fault, but…anyway, just go around the outside, okay?" Beckie led him back to the front door. "Good luck." She said as he opened the door. He smiled at her. "Thanks for the help."


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

A/N: A lot of people have been asking for longer chapters so…here ya go! One really looonnng chapter for you, as ordered! Turns out I was able to get this up before Friday…may be a while until chapter 7 though (it's still in progress)

Disclaimer: Nope still nothing…TT

Chapter 6

Piper bit her lip, trying not to cry. But as she remembered the awful day when her squad had begun to fall apart, she didn't notice that there were tears trickling down her cheek or that her lip had begun to bleed.

Flashback

_It was a few months after the final defeat of the Cyclonians. Life had been rather peaceful, except for the occasional attack by surviving Cyclonian soldiers or Cyclonian supporters who wanted revenge on the Storm Hawks for brining down the Cyclonian Empire. There wasn't much for the Sky Knights to do anymore, but general peacekeeping and rebuilding things that had been destroyed by the Cyclonians, so it wasn't really unheard of for squadrons to take "breaks", that were more like vacations than breaks. The Storm Hawks took such a "break" in the middle of November. They went to Tropica for some sun and nice weather. On their last day there, the whole squad (even Stork) went out for dinner. They were having a great time. They were laughing and joking and eating. Everything was perfect, that is until Aerrow made an announcement. As everyone was finishing their meal, Aerrow stood up and coughed to get their attention._

"_Sorry to interrupt, but I have to tell you something." Everyone stopped and listened to their squad leader. Aerrow sighed. "I'm leaving." He said. Looking around, he was met with the confused stares of his teammates. _

"_Wait, dude. What do you mean by leaving?" asked Finn. Everyone nodded in agreement. Aerrow sighed again._

_"I mean I'm leaving, leaving the team." They all gasped. There was an awkward pause, and then Finn spoke up again. "You're kidding…right?" Aerrow looked around at their expectant faces and felt a pang of sorrow in his heart. He hung his head. "No, I'm not…" he said so quietly they barely heard him. "Those men that attacked us the other week…unlike most of the others, they were only after me and I knew that they would hurt you or use you to get to me. I'm sorry, but I can't let that happen." He turned and left the restaurant before any of them could say another word._

_They all knew which men he was talking about. They had ambushed the Storm Hawks on Terra Amazonia. Thankfully, the men had underestimated them and everyone had managed to get back to the Condor and they had got away relatively unharmed. Everyone had known that, if those men hadn't underestimated them, they could have all been gravely injured or even killed._

_Piper, however, wasn't going to let the matter rest. As she stood up, no one was saying anything, except Stork, who was muttering to himself about how they were doomed. Piper tailed Aerrow out into the street, confusion still evident on her face. Hearing her footsteps behind him, he turned to face her, his face contorted with hurt and pain._

_"Please." He practically begged. "Please Piper, don't make this any harder than it has to be." His green eyes had lost their playful spark and were as dull as the clouds that covered the, normally clear and sunny, sky. "But WHY Aerrow? Why do you have to leave?" cried Piper, tears beginning to sparkle in her orange eyes. "Why?" This last part came out as a whisper. Aerrow turned his head away so she couldn't see his face. "I'm sorry." He whispered. "But it has to be this way." His voice rose steadily. "Those men are after me. They want to kill me and they'll hurt all of you to get to me. I can't let that happen. I won't!" he was yelling now._

_The tears began to stream down Piper's cheeks, unchecked. She began to shake uncontrollably as her body was racked with sobs. She began to shake her head back and forth, whispering and sobbing. As her voice rose from a whisper to a mutter and further still, Aerrow could hear what she was saying. "No. You can't, I won't let you. You can't do this to me, to us, your squadron, your friends. No, no, no. You can't, you just can't." Suddenly she stopped and looked up at him fire burning in her tear brimmed eyes._

_"No!" she choked out in a screaming sob. "No, no, NO!" Piper's tears began to flow again in earnest. She turned and ran. That was the final straw. There was no way on earth that Aerrow was going to let her punish him for making the right decision. He caught up to her quickly and grabbed her arm, spinning her around. Piper raised her other hand to hit him, but he caught her wrist._

_"LET ME GO!" she screamed, struggling against the grip he had on her. "Let me go! Let me go!" She repeated it over and over, each time quieter than the last until, finally, she was just sobbing quietly. Aerrow loosened his grip and pulled her, sobbing and shaking, into his arms. He held her as she cried. Putting his head down on top of hers, to hide the fact that his own eyes were starting to tear up, Aerrow began to mutter and whisper sweet nothings into her hair, rocking her back and forth, and running one hand up and down her back in order to calm her. When Piper finally stopped crying he let her out of his embrace and took her face in his hands, tilting it up so she was looking into his eyes._

_"Piper…sweet, sweet Piper. You have to understand that I'm doing this for everyone, but…" Aerrow hesitated. "But…this is…um…I mean that…" he sighed and then took a deep breath. "This is for you, most of all. I don't want you to get hurt or used against your will or worse. I care about you so, so much and I would kill myself if you ever got hurt and – " He was cut off as Piper placed her finger on his lips. She was smiling a little, her eyes red from crying. "If you kill yourself if I only get hurt, who's going to stay by my side to help me get better?"_

_Aerrow opened his mouth to protest, but Piper shook her head. "It's alright. I understand and I'm sorry that I acted so spoiled." She turned away to hide the fresh tears that were threatening to spill over. "I'm still not sure that it's the best course of action, but if you think it is, then I'm with you." Aerrow smiled sadly down at her and embraced her in a hug again. Piper hugged him back tightly, not wanting to let him go as she breathed in his scent._

_When he finally disentangled himself from their embrace, Piper was close to tears. Aerrow put his arm around her shoulders and led her back to where the group had parked their skimmers (and Stork's Merbmobile) (A/N: Ya gotta love the Merbmobile lol) in front of the restaurant. Piper saw that the rest of their team was now standing out in front of the restaurant and Radarr was sat in his usual spot on Aerrow's skimmer._

_Aerrow stopped next to his skimmer and turned to Piper, his hand in his pocket. He pulled out a large intricately carved heart-shaped silver locket, with an abstract design of flowers and hearts. She noticed that, if she looked at the design a certain way, she could almost see her name, written in flowing script. Aerrow opened the locket and inside were two pictures: on one side, a picture of the whole crew in front of the Condor, on the other side, a picture of just Piper and Aerrow together, laughing. All of a sudden the locket began to play a song. Though startled by the sudden music, Piper recognised the song. It was The Scientist by Coldplay, but there were no words, only the music. She looked up at Aerrow in awe and he smiled down on her._

_"It's a mood music locket. I got it for you when we took that trip to the market the other day. I got it as a parting gift cause I knew you wouldn't take the news well…then again I didn't expect any of you to take the news well, but I knew you'd like it least of all." He closed the locket and attached it around the back of her neck. When he drew back, he put his hands on her shoulders._

_"Just open the locket and the music that will play will either mirror your mood or, if you're really sad, cheer you up. I picked pictures that I thought would help you feel better." Aerrow's hands slid off her shoulders, but then were on either side of her head. He tilted her head up and kissed her forehead lightly, dropped his hands to his sides, and turned and walked over to his skimmer._

_"Wait!" cried Piper. She ran up to Aerrow and hugged him tightly. He was surprised at first, but then smiled and hugged her back. When she finally let go, she watched him get on his skimmer with tears in her eyes. She bit her lip, silently forbidding them to fall. When Aerrow started the skimmer's engine, Piper made up her mind._

_She stepped forward, leaned in and kissed his cheek. As she drew back, blushing and noticing that he was too, she whispered in his ear: "Please, be careful." He smiled at her and took her hand. "Of course." Piper stepped back again. Aerrow revved his skimmer and, with a solemn nod and wave to the others, raced off down the street._

_Piper couldn't take it anymore, she sank to her knees on the side of the road. Suddenly the clouds opened and poured rain down on everyone and, because of the rain, Piper didn't even notice the tears streaming down her face. She hardly even noticed that the others were gathered around her. Finn and Junko kneeled next to her and wrapped her in a tight hug and even Stork put a comforting hand on her shoulder._

Slowly the memory of that painful day faded, though the pain was still just as clear in her heart. The tears that had welled up in Piper's eyes as she remembered, had clouded her vision. She wiped them away and suddenly became aware of the shadow that was cast along the ground by someone standing a few feet away. She gasped.

It was a very familiar shadow.


	7. Chapter 7

A/N: Finally! I finished chapter 7. Chapter 8 may take a while tho. (I still have to think of what to do for it…if you have any ideas for what you want to happen please let me kno) Sorry that it's not as long (I tried...I really did!)

ENJOY!!

Disclaimer: Nothing…grr XP

Chapter 7

As Aerrow exited the café, he began to feel nervous. How would Piper react to him returning after all these years? Would she be angry? Happy to see him? Sad? Aerrow sighed. He wouldn't know unless he found her. He walked back into the parking lot. Radarr was sat on Aerrow's skimmer, but jumped off and ran over to his friend, scrambling up onto his shoulder. Radarr made a soft questioning sound, wondering what had happened, where was Piper? Aerrow scratched him behind the ears.

"She's here alright. But now I have to go around back to see if she's still there, like the girl inside said." Aerrow turned his head to look at Radarr. "You wanna come with me?" Radarr nodded vigorously and Aerrow smiled.

He continued to walk through the parking lot. At the back there was a gate. It was unlocked and partially ajar. It led to the back of the building. Aerrow pushed the gate and it swung open easily and without a sound. He looked around and the breath suddenly caught in his throat.

There, against the back wall, sat Piper.

Her head was buried in her hands and he could hear her quiet sobbing where he stood. He walked over and stood in front of her, a few feet back so as not to startle her too much.

Finally after a few minutes Piper lifted her head and tears could be seen streaming down her cheeks. She wiped them away and Aerrow heard her give a small gasp. She looked up very quickly. Aerrow could see the disbelief in her eyes. Suddenly she began to sob and the tears began to fall again.

"I'm dreaming aren't I? I fell asleep and now Duncan is going to come out and wake me, yelling at me for falling asleep on the job." She sobbed even harder. Her sobbing was breaking Aerrow's heart. He walked right up in front of her and sank to his knees. He gently took her hands in his.

"If you're dreaming then I guess I am too." Aerrow gave a small, sad smile. "I've missed you so much Piper."

"Aerrow?" Piper asked in a small voice. "So I'm not dreaming? You're really here?" Aerrow smiled.

"Yes. Yes I am." Piper gave one last sob and, bounding from the wall with speed that she didn't even know she had, she tackled Aerrow with a hug. They both fell to the ground, but neither cared. Piper laid her head on Aerrow's chest and closed her eyes as he ran his fingers through her hair. After a few minutes they both got to their feet. Radarr, who had jumped to safety when Piper had tackled Aerrow, now jumped on Piper's shoulder. He squawked with delight, happy to see the navigator again after so long, and nuzzled her cheek. She giggled, wiping the rest of the tears from her eyes.

"Hey Radarr. It's good to see you too." Piper petted Radarr and scratched him behind the ears. Aerrow got out his cell phone and dialled a number that looked familiar to Piper, but she couldn't think of who's it was. The person on the other end picked up on the first ring.

"Chiki-cha. You've reached the Finn-maestro. Ladies man extraordinaire! Sup?" Aerrow grinned at Finn's greeting.

"Hey Finn, it's Aerrow. Tell Stork to meet us at the ship port. I found Piper."

"Sweet dude! We'll be there ASAP!" Aerrow could hear Finn calling out to Stork as he hung up. Aerrow turned back to Piper. She was staring at him, fresh tears in her eyes, having heard what he had said on the phone.

"Finn's here too?" Aerrow nodded.

"And Junko and Stork. They're bringing the Condor to the ship port and should be here soon." Piper began to cry again, but this time she was smiling. Aerrow walked up to her and wrapped her in a hug. Piper sniffed and wiped her eyes yet again. (A/N: sorry if this is getting repetitive :b) She smilled up at Aerrow.

"What are we waiting for then?" She stepped out of his embrace. "Let's go." She began to walk towards the parking lot, but Aerrow grabbed her arm.

"But what about your boss? Won't he be mad for you leaving in the middle of your shift?" Piper gave a small, derisive laugh.

"If Dumb-can's got a problem with me leaving right now, I'll tell him where to shove it." She took Aerrow's hand in her own.

"Let's go home."


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

A/N: I'm _really, REALLY_ sorry that this chapter is so insanely short, but I ran out of ideas…chapter 9 _should_ be up _fairly _shortly...I hope XP

Disclaimer: zip zilch nada! (trust me you'd _know_ if I owned Storm Hawks ;3)

Chapter 8

Aerrow smiled back at Piper and gave her hand a gentle squeeze. Radarr nuzzled Piper's cheek one more time, then jumped from her shoulder to Aerrow's. They walked back out into the parking lot. Piper let go of Aerrow's hand as she got on her helliscooter. Aerrow got on his skimmer and Radarr jumped from Aerrow's shoulder to his special seat. Piper turned to Aerrow.

"Where are we headed?"

"The ship port." They smiled at each other and started up their respective rides. They pulled out of the parking lot and sped down the street, towards the ship port.

Beckie smiled as she watched her friend drive away. She knew that Piper would finally be happy again, now that Aerrow had come back and all her old friends were together again. Beckie's smile suddenly became a sad one as she realized that she probably wouldn't see Piper much anymore, if at all.


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

A/N: Here it is. (FINALLY!) Sorry if anybody is OOC (namely Finn and/or Stork), but I tried my best and I wanted it kinda a little more sentimental (wouldn't you be ecstatic to see one of your friends after 5 years of them not being around??)

Disclaimer: I don't own Storm Hawks (oh trust me…you'd know if I did ;3 )

Chapter 9

When Piper and Aerrow pulled up to the ship port, Piper almost began to cry again, for there, parked at the closest dock, was the Condor. Deciding that she had done enough crying to last a long time, she took a deep shuddering breath and suppressed her tears. Aerrow walked over and hugged her from behind.

"Hey. It's okay. You can cry if you need to. I'm right here." Piper turned around in Aerrow's embrace and wrapped her arms around his waist. Tears began to stream down her face. Aerrow didn't care that his shirt was being soaked; he just wanted Piper to finally be happy after all these years, after everything that had happened. Finally Piper's tears stopped and she looked up at Aerrow, tears staining her cheeks and sitting in the corners of her eyes.

"Thank you Aerrow." She whispered. Aerrow smiled and let her out of the embrace, but still held on to both of her hands. He wiped the remaining tears that had leaked onto her cheeks away with his thumb.

Then Aerrow kissed her forehead. Piper looked at him, surprised, a blush staining her cheeks. They stared into each other's eyes. Aerrow felt like he was being filled with a warmth that radiated from Piper's beautiful orange eyes, while Piper felt like she was falling deeper and deeper into the depths of the beautiful pools of green that were Aerrow's eyes.

They began to inch closer together, both mesmerized by the other's eyes. They were less than an inch apart when they were interrupted by familiar voices.

"PIPER!" Aerrow and Piper turned to see Finn and Junko running towards them with Stork following slowly behind. Piper was nearly knocked off her feet as Finn and Junko both tackled her with a bear hug at the same time.

"I can't believe you're back! We've missed you so much Piper." Cried Finn. Eventually he and Junko let Piper go. Piper turned to Stork and gave him a smile.

"Hey Stork."

"Hey." Mumbled Stork. Then, without warning, he hugged Piper tightly. She was shocked for a moment, then hugged him back. A minute later they broke apart. Stork turned to Aerrow.

"Thank god you got back when you did. I don't think I could have taken anymore of Finn's whining and complaining"

"Hey!" cried Finn, crossing his arms and pouting. Everyone laughed.

"C'mon." said Junko. "Let's go back inside. It looks like it's gonna rain." They all looked up to see that the sky had been covered in dark grey, almost black clouds. They walked back to the Condor, Piper and Aerrow wheeling their bikes with them.

As Piper was going up the ramp, she stopped and placed a hand softly on the side of the ship. Aerrow walked up behind her and put a hand on her shoulder. She turned to look at him. He smiled.

"Welcome home."


	10. Chapter 10

A/N: Sorry it took so long for me to update

A/N: Sorry it took so long for me to update. Stupid exams! Anyway, here's chapter 10 and there should be more to come shortly…huh…I've said _that_ before!, but seriously there should be.

Disclaimer: checks with lawyers nope, still nothing TT

Chapter 10

After Piper had put her heliscooter away in the hanger, she went to the bridge where she found the boys waiting for her.

"Hey Piper!" said Junko. "We've got a bit of a problem here."

"What is it?" asked Piper, wondering why the boys always needed her to solve their problems.

"Well, we were trying to figure out where we could go next and Finn and Aerrow want to go to different places. Aerrow wants to go visit the Absolute Zeros, but Finn wants to go to Tropica. I thought that you should choose between the two cause you just got back." Junko finished and looked at Piper. She looked thoughtful for a moment before speaking.

"I would love to go see Suzi-Lou and the Absolute Zeros," she began." But I think that, right now, I'd rather go to Tropica." Finn began to cheer. Piper smiled, but shook her head.

"Sorry to rain on your parade Finn, but we can't leave just yet. I have to quit my job at the café and move out of my apartment." Finn groaned.

"Oh alright…how soon can we leave?"

"By earliest, late tonight." Replied Piper. She turned to Aerrow. "By the way, can I invite Beckie to come with us? She's never been to Tropica and she has been there for me all these years. It would be a nice way to thank her for all that she's done."

"Sure." Aerrow said, with a smile. "I'll just have to be careful not to make her angry again. Boy can she yell." Piper laughed.

"Oh my god. She yelled at you? What for?" Aerrow's smile faded a little and he turned his head away.

"Nevermind. It doesn't matter now." He turned back to Piper, smiling again. "So, are we going to get your stuff or what?"

--

A/N: Sorry! I know it's short, but I thought that this was the best place to stop. I really need to work on either making the chapters longer or pumping them out faster (both would be good!)


	11. Chapter 11

A/N: _Finally!!_ Chapie 11 is up! I'm really sorry it took so long, but I had Summer school all through July, had writers block in August, have been swamped with work since school started, and now I'm trying to get a x-mas fic done in time for Christmas (okay, so that last one is my own damn fault…wutevs)!! Anyway, enjoy and there should be more up soon…fairly soon…heh *:S

Disclaimer: YES! IT'S MINE, ALL MINES!!!! *sees lawyer shaking head* XP Spoilsport!

Chapter 11

Not long after Piper left, daily business in the café slowed down considerably. Beckie looked down at her watch. There was only fifteen minutes left in her shift, so she grabbed her bag and snuck out the back door. She didn't care if Duncan yelled at her tomorrow; she really didn't feel like sticking around now that Piper was gone. Beckie wasn't really that sad that Piper had left, in fact she was quite happy that Piper was back with her old friends again. Beckie was, however, rather put out that Piper hadn't come to say goodbye. She sighed heavily as she climbed on her skimmer and drove off down the road.

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Beckie unlocked the door to her apartment, tossed her bag on the floor and went to her room to change out of her work clothes. She put on leggings, a long t-shirt and a BFF necklace that Piper had gotten her for her birthday a few years ago, then walked back into the living room and flopped on the couch. Suddenly she heard a little meow beside her. She opened her eyes and found herself staring at the face of a small black kitten with a tuft of white under his chin and white front paws. Beckie smiled.

"Hello George." She said sitting up and scratching him behind the ears. He purred contentedly as he curled up on Beckie's lap. She picked up the remote, turned the TV on, and began channel surfing.

Suddenly, there was a knock at the door. Beckie picked George up off her lap, despite his mew of protest, and went to answer it. She looked through the peephole in the door and saw that it was her blonde-haired, hazel-eyed neighbour, Charlie, so she opened the door.

"Hey Charlie. How's it going?" Beckie said with a small smile. He smiled back.

"I'm good. Umm…" He looked around her, into the apartment. "Where's Piper? Doesn't she usually come home with you after work?" Beckie's smile fell and Charlie noticed. "What's the matter?"

"Nothing really, it's just…well you know how Piper used to belong to a Sky Knight Squadron?" Charlie nodded and Beckie continued. "Well her old squadron leader came to the café today and she left with him to go rejoin her squadron. I'm happy for her, I really am! It's just…" Beckie sighed. "I just wish she had come to say goodbye." She hung her head so that Charlie couldn't see the tears beginning to stream down her cheeks, but she looked up again when she felt a gentle hand on her shoulder, looked up to see the sympathetic smile that Charlie gave her as he gave her shoulder a squeeze.

"Hey, don't cry." He said wiping a thumb across Beckie's cheek. "Piper could still come by here to say goodbye to you. I can't honestly believe that after you two being best friends for so many years, she would just leave without a simple goodbye." He smiled at her and she returned the smile hesitantly.

"By the way," Charlie began, removing his hand from Beckie's shoulder. "I found this in my mailbox today." He held up an envelope. "It's addressed to you. I'm not entirely sure how it got into my mailbox. The postmen are usually perfectionists about sorting the mail." He handed Beckie the envelope.

"Thanks."

"No problem. I'll see you later." Charlie gave a small wave, which Beckie returned, and walked back into his apartment.

Beckie looked at the envelope curiously, turning it over in her hands. Most of the mail she got consisted of junk mail and bills, sometimes cards or letters from family. There was no return address on the envelope and her name and address was written in handwriting that she didn't recognize. She shrugged and proceeded to rip the top open with the help of her nails.

A huge puff of discoloured smoke suddenly erupted from the envelope straight into Beckie's face, stinging her eyes and cutting off her airways. She began choking for air, her watering eyes blurring her vision as she collapsed onto the floor in the hallway. Through her teary eyes she saw Charlie come out of his apartment again.

"Help me." Beckie wheezed out, stretching her hand out to him. A sudden flash, emanating from Charlie's direction, worsened her already blurry vision. Charlie kneeled down next to her, but it wasn't the Charlie she knew, he had changed. His eyes had changed from hazel to red and his hair from blonde to black. 'Charlie' chuckled evilly as he snapped the necklace Beckie was wearing from her neck.

"I'm back." He said in a sing-song voice and chuckled again.

It was the last thing Beckie heard before she lost consciousness.

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A/N: MWAHAHAHA!! CLIFFHANGER! I r eeeevviiiilll!! Can you guess who 'Charlie' really is?

Chapie 12 coming soon (hopefully…heh)


	12. Chapter 12

A/N: I'M BAAAACK!! *is shot* I know, I know. I've been away for FOREVER and for that I'm vary vary sorry. *grovels* PLEASE FORGIVE ME!!! Ahem…okay I'm done. Anyway, this chapter would have been uploaded a while ago, but I was on a roll and decided to wait and upload a bunch at one time (as a forgive-me offering ;)…so here comes chapters 12, 13 and 14 (with 15 well on the way)!! HOORAY!

Disclaimer: yadda yadda yadda…I don't own, so don't sue :P

Chapter 12

Piper couldn't help but grin as she drove down the road, her old friends driving with her. She felt amazing right now. Her old Sky Knight Squad was back together, she was on her way to shove her letter of resignation in her stupid boss' face, then she was moving out of her tiny, cramped apartment, and then she was going to find Beckie and thank her for all she had done, and, finally, they were all going on a sweet vacation to Tropica, Beckie included. Nothing could make this day any better.

No…tell a lie…Piper could think of one thing (something that involved a certain red-haired squad leader saying a certain three words), but seeing as she didn't honestly think it was ever going to happen, she put it out of her mind and concentrated on all the other amazing things.

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Arriving at the café, Piper instructed the boys to wait outside while she collected her things. Using the employee's entrance in the back, Piper went to the break room and opened her locker, grabbing her things and stuffing them into a bag. She ignored the sound of the door opening again, assuming it was just another waiter arriving or leaving, until she heard a familiar voice ring out behind her.

"Where the hell have you been?" Piper whirled around to find her boss, Duncan, standing at the door, arms crossed and glaring at her heatedly.

"You left almost 3 hours ago, two hours before your shift ended!" He continued.

"Uh…I'm sorry Duncan, but…uh…something came up." Piper finished rather lamely.

"Something came up did it? Well I certainly hope you worked it out. It sounds like it must have been very urgent and important, much more than work." He snapped, voice dripping with sarcasm. Piper's jaw clenched and she mustered her courage to do what needed doing. Looking straight into Duncan's eyes, she smiled.

"Thank you so much for your understanding," Piper said, just as sarcastically as he had. "It was very important actually, but I'm not quite done. There's one more thing that I need to do. Two words, just for you. I quit!" And with that Piper pushed past him and dashed out the back door.

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After stopping at her apartment and packing up clothes and other essential items, Piper locked up her apartment and left a letter for the superintendent explaining the situation. Then, accompanied by Aerrow, she went to Beckie's apartment while Finn and Junko returned to the Condor with her things.

As Piper approached Beckie's door, she instantly saw that something was wrong. Beckie's door sat ever so slightly ajar. Quickening her pace Piper reached the door and pushed it open quietly while Aerrow hovered nervously over her shoulder. Entering the apartment, Piper saw no signs of a struggle.

"Beckie?" she called, but there was no response. A sudden mew made her jump slightly and she looked down to find George rubbing himself against her ankles. Piper leaned down and picked up the kitten.

"Hello little Georgie. Where's your mama? Hmm?" She asked the black and white kitten as she scratched him behind the ears. The only response she got was purring.

"Piper," She turned at Aerrow's call. He was standing by the kitchen table, holding an envelope.

"It's addressed to you." He said. Piper joined him at the table, placing George on the tabletop as she took the envelope from Aerrow. She ripped the top and pulled out a single piece of paper. It said:

"I'm back and I have her. Revenge will be sweet.

Signed,

DA (aka 'Charlie')"

Passing the note to Aerrow, Piper pulled out the other item in the envelope. It was a necklace.

A BFF necklace.

"This is Beckie's!" Aerrow looked up from the note at Piper's outburst. "I gave it to her a couple years ago for her birthday. It's one of her favorite necklaces." She looked up at Aerrow and he could see the pure panic and terrified concern in her eyes. "We have to find her!" She cried.

"Who do you know named Charlie?" Asked Aerrow and Piper's eyebrows knit together in concentration.

"The only Charlie I know is Beckie's next door neighbor, but he was always so nice!" Piper defended.

"What about DA? Or anyone who might want revenge?" Piper shook her head.

"I don't know of anyone who'd want revenge on me or Beckie. We've never done anything to make people angry, at least not on purpose. And of all the people I can think of, past and present, there's only one person with the initials DA…" She gasped and looked at Aerrow, whose eyes had widened as well, having come to the same conclusion almost simultaneously.

"The Dark Ace!"

A/N: To all those who guessed that "Charlie" was actually Dark Ace (at the end of chapter 11)…YOU GET A CHOCOLATE-CHIP COOKIE!! To those who reviewed me and guessed correctly (Kayla, fire-dancer123, Lady Snowstorm, DevilsAngelSaphire, Lilsterz, and Life'sAbitchAndThenYouDie)…YOU GET 2 TRIPLE-CHOCOLATE-MEGA-DEATH-BY-CHOCOLATE COOKIES EACH!! :D See…it pays to review ;)…so R&R!


	13. Chapter 13

Disclaimer: No ownage by me…Asaph Fipke owns all things Storm Hawks (I don't even have a lousy DVD or action figure XP)

Chapter 13

"The Dark Ace!"

Piper's hands flew to her mouth and her terror-filled eyes met Aerrow's haunted ones.

"He's back?" She whispered. Aerrow nodded slowly.

"He must be, it's the only thing that makes sense. 'I'm back', 'revenge', 'DA', it all points to him." Piper made a choked noise, somewhere between psychotic laughter and a sob. Aerrow wrapped Piper in a warm embrace and rubbed her back to comfort her.

"Don't worry Piper. We've beaten him plenty of times before, we can do it again." He told her.

"It's not us I'm worried about," she responded, voice muffled by his embrace. "It's Beckie!" She looked up at him and Aerrow saw the tears pooling in her tangerine eyes.

"As far as I know, she's never met the Dark Ace before. I don't know if she was ever part of a squadron or if she even knows how to fight!" Piper was quickly becoming hysterical with worry, so Aerrow gave her a gentle squeeze and planted a kiss on her forehead. A blush spread out rapidly on Piper's cheeks.

"It'll be alright," he said comfortingly. "Beckie's tough. I'm sure she'll be okay until we can find her." Piper sighed and rested her head on Aerrow's chest, allowing his closeness and warmth to calm and comfort her.

"But who knows how long it'll take us to find her. We have no idea where he's taken her." A squawk from Radarr caused them to both look over. Truth be told, Piper had forgotten he was there. He was stood behind Piper, pointing at the letter in Aerrow's hand. Aerrow let go of Piper to see what his co-pilot was pointing at.

On the back of the letter, in the bottom right hand corner there were numbers written. After staring at the numbers for a moment, Aerrow realised what they were.

Coordinates!

"Maybe it won't take so long after all." He said, unable to stop an excited grin from spreading across his face.

"What is it? What did Radarr find?" Piper asked impatiently.

"Coordinates. He found coordinates that were on the back of the paper. They're probably coordinates to where the Dark Ace is keeping Beckie." Piper began to smile too.

"Let's go then!" She said. And with that they rushed out the door.

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Upon returning to the Condor, Piper and Aerrow immediately informed the others about what they had found at Beckie's apartment. As soon as they had finished recounting their tale Piper grabbed a map of the terra and found the coordinates that had been written on the note.

"The coordinates belong to this terra's original shipyard, on the other side of the terra. It's old and abandoned, the perfect place to take a kidnapped person, especially if you're expecting a fight." Piper informed her squad mates. Aerrow smiled grimly.

"Then Dark Ace knows what he's doing for once 'cause he's about to get a fight he'll never forget."


	14. Chapter 14

Disclaimer: Really? Again? *sighs* You know the drill…me no own, so you no sue.

Chapter 14

While Piper and Aerrow were finding out about her kidnapping, Beckie was coming to.

As her mind returned to consciousness, Beckie took account of her surroundings as much as she could without opening her eyes. She could tell that she was sitting on a folding metal chair with her hands tied behind her back and her ankles tied to the chair legs. She could feel the cold rough concrete under her feet and her bare toes going numb in the cold.

Cracking an eye open, Beckie checked to see if there was anyone guarding her. There was no one, no one where she could see them anyway. Lifting her head from her shoulder, Beckie twisted her neck until it gave a large and satisfying crack, effectively ridding her of the huge crick in her neck. Beckie opened her eyes completely and appraised her surroundings.

She was in a small, dark room, the only source of light a small barred window near the ceiling which was, Beckie estimated, about 15 feet above the ground. The room was completely bare save for the chair on which she sat. The floor was rough concrete and the walls were corrugated steel.

Hearing footsteps approaching from the outside Beckie closed her eyes and let her head fall back onto her shoulder, pretending to still be unconscious. She heard the door open and felt the light from outside burn her eyes even through her eyelids. Someone's shadow suddenly covered the light as she felt a hand lift her head. A resounding smack and the sudden stinging of her cheek caused her eyes to pop open and for words to come unbidden from her mouth.

"Ouch! What the hell was that for!?" Beckie snapped, glaring at the silhouette before her. As her eyes adjusted to the additional light she saw that it was Charlie that stood before her. 'No,' she corrected herself. 'Not Charlie, he was only pretending to be Charlie.'

"Had to make sure you were still with us. Can't have you slipping away and ruining my whole plan, now can I?" He sneered. Beckie gritted her teeth.

"What do you need me for? And who the hell are you anyway?" She spat at the man in front of her, but he merely laughed.

"Who am I? I'm the Dark Ace! And you, my little dragon, are the key to my plan. You see, I've been searching seven years for a way to exact my revenge on the Storm Hawks, especially Aerrow. Well, when I found out that my next door neighbour was best friends with the Storm Hawk's navigator, I began planning my revenge. My original plan was to kidnap Piper, find Aerrow, and then kill her in front of him before finally killing him. But today, when I saw the Storm Hawk's ship parked in the shipyard, I changed my plan. Now, instead of kidnapping Piper, I decided to kidnap you. Then, when your friend comes to rescue you, no doubt with her squadron in tow, I will leave her to find you as I lure Aerrow away and back outside. Then I will detonate the load of highly volatile Hydro crystals I have sitting beneath this building. Aerrow will be able to do nothing but watch as his most precious person is crushed and drowned at the same time. By then he will be begging me to kill him and I will be more than willing to oblige, but slowly of course." Ace let out his best evil laugh.

A raucous alarm rang out and the Dark Ace stopped laughing, but he grinned unpleasantly down at Beckie.

"Well well, right on time…for their demise." Laughing again, he exited the room and slammed the door behind him. As soon as the door shut Beckie began struggling against the ropes that bound her to the chair, but they wouldn't budge. Silent tears began to stream down her cheeks. 'Please be careful Piper.' She thought. Suddenly another thought came to her and Beckie began screaming at the top of her lungs praying that someone would hear her.

"HELP ME! SOMEONE HELP ME PLEASE!"

A/N: I am terribly sorry about the Dark Ace in this chapter. He just got away from me and started MONOLOGUING!! (lol The Incredibles) Anyway, I hope to have chapter 15 up soon, but I have a sinking feeling that the plot bunnies have deserted me again…grr damn bunnies. So, please R&R and I hope you forgive me now for being away so long. Okay! Me love you long time!! :3 3


	15. Chapter 15

A/N: See! I said I'd have chapter 15 up soon! (Although I didn't expect to finish it quite THIS soon!)

Chapter 15

Piper watched as the decrepit and abandoned shipyard drew nearer through the large window in the bridge. Most of the dock was gone, rotted away. There were many warehouses along the edge of the shipyard, but they all looked abandoned as well.

Her thoughts turned to Beckie and the predicament she was in. Piper couldn't help but feel somewhat responsible for Beckie's kidnapping. She had been kidnapped because the Dark Ace knew she was friends with Piper. This never would have happened if they had never met.

Piper started slightly as she felt a hand intertwine with her own. She turned to find Aerrow standing next to her, watching the approaching terra as well. Without looking at her, he spoke.

"I know you're worried about Beckie, but I promise you she'll be okay." He looked down at her. "I am honestly so sorry for abandoning you like I did and I never want that to happen again, but look at it this way: if it hadn't happened, you never would have met Beckie, never would have made such a strong and caring friend." Piper smiled at him, but there was no more time for words as Stork's voice rang out.

"It doesn't look like there's anywhere for the Condor to dock. You guys are going to have to take your skimmers." Aerrow smiled and squeezed Piper's hand.

"That's our cue." And with that, they dashed off to the hanger bay, still holding hands.

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Stopping next to Piper's heliscooter, Aerrow turned to face her.

"When we get there, I want you to go and find Beckie. Don't worry about the Dark Ace, just leave him to me and go rescue your friend." He paused and it seemed to Piper like he was conflicted about something.

"Promise me you'll be careful." She said and Aerrow grinned at her.

"Hey, it's me." He said cheerfully, but Piper frowned.

"I'm serious Aerrow. Promise me you won't do anything too rash or risky." She hesitated before continuing in a quiet voice. "Promise you'll come back to me." Aerrow's smile faded and he stared at Piper in all seriousness.

"I promise Piper. I promise I'll be careful and I promise that I'll come back to you, I'll always come back to you…and this is my guarantee." He reached up and cupped Piper's cheek with his free hand, and before Piper had a chance to realize what was going on, she felt Aerrow's lips on hers.

Her eyes fluttered close as she leaned into the kiss, but as suddenly as it had happened, it was over. Before Piper could say anything, Aerrow let go of her hand and hurried over to his own skimmer. She stood next to her heliscooter in a daze until Finn's voice broke through her thoughts.

"C'mon Piper, let's go!" Piper nodded and got on her heliscooter. She'd deal with that kiss later. Right now she had a friend to rescue.

A/N: I just realized how completely CHEEZE Aerrow's line to Piper before he kisses her is!! *is mortally embarrassed* Just in care you didn't figure it out before…that line proves that I am a complete cheezefest romantic. XP Okay, I'm done ranting so please review…but I don't know if the plot bunnies have deserted me or not, so don't hold your breath for chapter 16 to be here anywhere NEAR this quickly!


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